2923 — “Whoever meets Allah without associating anything with Him and without having stained himself with unlawfully shed blood will enter Paradise.”

Ahmad (4/152) narrated it: Wakiʿ narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Khalid, from ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿAʾidh, from ʿUqbah ibn ʿAmir al-Juhani, who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said it.

Ibn Abi Shaybah also narrated it through this chain of transmission in his Musnad, as cited in al-Busiri’s Zawaʾid Ibn Majah (folio 162/2). Ibn Majah (2618) and al-Hakim (4/351) likewise narrated it through two other routes from Wakiʿ, with the same chain. Al-Hakim authenticated it, and al-Dhahabi agreed with him. It is indeed as they said, for all its narrators are trustworthy and were relied upon by the two Shaykhs, apart from this Ibn ʿAʾidh; yet al-Nasaʾi and Ibn Hibban declared him trustworthy.

Al-Busiri, however, criticized it on account of a break in the chain, saying: “This is an authentic chain, provided that ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn ʿAʾidh al-Azdi heard from ʿUqbah ibn ʿAmir; for it has been said that his narration from him is disconnected.” That is what he said, but I do not know of anyone before him who made such a statement. I believe that he confused the matter, for al-Hafiz mentioned that he narrated from a number of Companions, including ʿUmar, ʿAli, Muʿadh, ʿUqbah, and others. He then said: “It has been said that he lived to see ʿAli. Abu Zurʿah said: His hadith from ʿAli is disconnected, and he did not live to see Muʿadh. Ibn Abi Hatim said: He narrated from ʿUmar through a disconnected report.”

This is all that they mentioned in his biographical entry concerning breaks in his transmission. It therefore appears that he confused ʿUqbah with Muʿadh; and there is a vast difference between their dates of death, for Muʿadh died in 18 AH, whereas ʿUqbah died in 60 AH. He certainly lived to see him. Al-Hafiz alluded to this in al-Taqrib, where he said: “Trustworthy, from the third generation. Those who listed him among the Companions were mistaken. Abu Zurʿah said: He did not live to see Muʿadh.”

Moreover, Wakiʿ was corroborated, for Ahmad (4/148) said: Yazid ibn Harun narrated to us: “He informed us …”